As winter is now upon us I felt I needed some suitable gloves. My summer Sidewinders are too thin and cold for winter, my neoprene Polarpaws are waterproof but offer no warmth and my Pearl Izumi mitts are very warm but bulky and only suitable for subzero temperatures when riding to the polar ice caps. I needed something in between, and I have found it, in the shape of Fox’s new Thermalpaw glove.
The appearance is very Darth Vader, jet black with elasticated ribbing on the fingers and back of hand to aid movement, and a nice big red Fox logo to show my allegiance to the best manufacturer of gloves on the planet.
As you slip your hand inside the first thing you notice is the warm fleecy inner to keep your hands nice and toasty, though it is not so thick as to limit feel of the handlebars and brake levers. A Clarino leather palm also gives good grip and comfort. The greatly improved, more robust velcro cuff fasteners look very good and work well. All in all this is one very comfortable and robust feeling glove.
I have only worn the gloves on one ride so far, in the Lake District, on the wettest and coldest day of the year this winter, a true test of the gloves. And how did they fare? Well, OK. Not brilliant, but OK.
Firstly, that brilliant velcro cuff isn’t that brilliant, and soon let water in, and once the water got in, that nice cosy fleecy inner soon became wet and cold. However I must add that the conditions were very extreme and pretty much all my ‘waterproof’ kit wasn’t waterproof for long. The protection on the back of the hand from branches and tumbles was very good, and the Clarino palm gripped well despite the wet.
I think maybe the extreme weather would have defeated any waterproof glove and I will report back after wearing my Thermalpaws after a drier ride.
All in all these are good value (£29.99) and offer good protection and grip, and I recommend you buy a pair soon. However have a plastic bag ready to put over them when the weather gets really wet.
Looks/styling: 9/10
Design features/materials:: 7/10
Performance:: 7/10
Team Hodgson.
If you are in pain after a big crash, that is good, it means you are still alive.